Enemies of the proposed Tampa Bay Express (TBX) toll lanes have a new ally: state Senator Frank Artiles (R-Miami) is sponsoring a bill which would stop the creation of any more such lanes (aka “Lexus lanes”) on Florida state roads. He said in a statement on Jan. 5 that he was moved to file Senate Bill 250 because of the horrendous experience of South Florida motorists, who’ve suffered “more than 12,000 reported accidents in the express lanes over the past three years.” The bill also has support in the Senate from Tampa/St. Pete Democratic Sen. Darryl Rouson, vice chair of the Transportation Committee, and in the House from Rep. Manny Diaz (R-Miami).
With the backing of the Florida Highway Patrol, who consider themselves at risk on this dangerous highway, Senator Artiles reflects the concerns of his Hialeah constituents. He observes, “Highway express lanes are unsafe, inefficient and add an unnecessary burden for all users, as the numbers clearly show.”
A grassroots watchdog group there, RollBackTolls.com, calls the current setup “The Triple Squeeze by FDOT on I-95 Express Lane: Your wallet, your highway and your life.” Since 2010 they’ve been pushing for more accountability from the Miami Expressway Authority and FDOT.
Everyone’s tax dollars help pay for the express lanes, but only folks who pay additional dollars in tolls are allowed to drive on them. Some frustrated motorists on I-95 drive over the plastic lane dividers that separate the Lexus lanes from the hoi polloi, leading to anger and accidents. When you have Republican representatives concerned about “double taxation,” you know you’ve hit a hot-button issue.
Further aggravating South Floridian drivers, FDOT says that a solution to these problems is 10 years down the road. Ironically, during the myriad talks in Tampa Bay about TBX, the FDOT spokespeople cited I-95 as a success.
SB 250 promises “no new, tolled express lanes on Florida highways,” which would include I-95, I-75 and I-4. This bill would not address the Suncoast Expressway or the Hillsborough County Expressway’s fiefdoms, but it would change the toll road calculus in this state.
Rick Fernandez, president of the Tampa Heights Civic Association, observes, “Florida has more toll roads than any other state in the union. It is Rick Scott’s policy to double down on that legacy. In Tampa, TBX is the local manifestation of that policy, blindly pursued by FDOT without regard for impacts suffered by neighborhoods and business centers in its path.”
1000 Friends of Florida, a statewide advocacy group promoting good planning, sent a letter to the Hillsborough County MPO weighing in on the toll lane issue. Their letter stated that “TBX would harm existing communities, would facilitate sprawl and would fail to reduce motor vehicle congestion.”
Decades of studies show that building more lanes attracts more traffic, but doesn’t solve our transportation problems. Investing in more highway lanes means we’re not pursuing other mobility options, like transit.
The holdup on transit has been a lack of local funding to match state and federal dollars. A potential solution exists, albeit with an incredibly awkward name: the “Charter County Transportation Sales Surtax.” Both the Pinellas and Hillsborough referenda for transportation failed countywide, but passed in the cities of St. Pete and Tampa. The Charter County Surtax would potentially allow cities to fund their own transit systems when matched with state and federal dollars. Mayors Kriseman and Buckhorn both cheer this idea on. (Currently, only counties in Florida have the power to hold referenda.)
The statewide advisory group for MPOs is promoting this idea, too. The first recommendation in their list of 2016 legislative priorities was to expand the Charter County and Regional Transportation System Surtax to allow municipalities in all counties located in MPO areas to enact up to a one cent local option surtax by referendum.
Recently elected state Rep. Sean Shaw agrees with this initiative. Shaw has consistently criticized TBX, but recognizes our area’s tough transportation needs. He expressed concerns that the FDOT staff’s talk of a “reset” is just a PR move to soften neighborhood opposition.
Since the transportation action seems to be in Tallahassee, we need to chat up our reps there, as well as those leading the charge on SB250. Thank goodness for email, because it’s a long slog or an expensive flight to get to the legislature, but our future mobility depends it.
A former Tampa City Councilmember and city planner, Linda Saul-Sena has been an active opponent of the TBX project (as is evident from the photo).
